In a letter addressed to the EU Commissioner, Didier Reynders, ETF asks for the immediate intervention of the European Commission, due to the Hungarian ‘government’s attempts to permanently impede the right to strike of the Hungarian Air Traffic Controllers.
The ETF reveals the Hungarian Parliament will vote on modifying the current Act on Civil Aviation, based on a bill – so-called ‘salad-act.’ In reality, ETF further explains to the EU Commissioner for Justice, Didier Reynders, that this act is destined to extend the pandemic related ban on strike action to a permanent rule on minimum services for Air Traffic Controllers.
In case of a favourable vote in the Parliament, next week, such a decision will effectively forbid the Hungarian air traffic workers to freely exercise their right to industrial action, to strike.
With this initiative, warns ETF in the letter, Orban Government is actually going beyond the implementation of emergency legislation under the ‘state of danger regime.’ This is a clear indication of the Hungarian government desperate actions to enshrine this in national law and permanently implement legislation which is directly in conflict with the decision of the Hungarian courts in the first instance.
The ETF reminds the EU Commission of its legal obligations towards the workers in Hungary to protect the rule of law, as Hungary is an EU Member State. At the same time, the Hungarian workers rely on the EC’s support to face the sustained attacks and attempts of the Hungarian government to infringe on worker’s rights.